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Tommy Moyles spoke to mart manager Tom McCarthy in Bandon on Monday, where calf sellers had to wait their turn to sell outside the calf ring.

With 2,000 calves on offer for the second week in a row and prevailing trading conditions, the trade was steady.

Read the full mart report and how restrictions were implemented in this report.

Nowhere to hide for bidders at Bandon Mart this week.

How agri contractors can prevent the spread of Covid-19

With the weather set to improve in the coming days, the workload for tillage farmers and contractors in particular will increase immensely, given the challenging weather and unsuitable field conditions to date.

Teagasc advisory offices are open for pre-arranged appointments only and for staff who are unable to work from home.

All Teagasc Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) and nitrates derogation appointments will now be processed over the phone rather than an office consultation.

Teagasc staff will contact farmer clients in the coming weeks. BPS applications for clients, in so far as possible, will be done over the phone.

For farmers in a derogation, prior to application submission, clients will be asked to signify agreement to the application through email or text. Teagasc staff will contact clients to make arrangements.

The Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU) has also announced the suspension of all its internal meetings due to health and safety concerns.

Mart trading 'may change day by day'

Mart trading arrangements are being monitored and assessed on a daily basis ICOS has said, but will continue to operate under the strict guidelines issued by the Government last Thursday.

On Monday evening, ICOS environment and livestock executive Ray Doyle said: "It’s business, not as usual, but continuing for now and this may change day to day, depending on the overall situation and ongoing guidance from the authorities."

Dairy Industry Ireland (DII) has been working to assure all supply lines are kept open to manage dairy product flows to ensure the industry can keep the shelves and fridges stocked across the European Union, including across borders, as Europe adjusts to the coronavirus pandemic.

DII has made a number of points to EU regulators, including:

The smooth and constant supply of milk and dairy products for the population across the union is of vital importance in all stages of the Covid-19 management plans and in all parts of the union, at whatever level affected by the virus.

Raw milk is a highly perishable product that requires processing within 48 hours. Milk collection operations must be maintained without any interruption across the union.

Over the past days, we have seen a significant increase in milk and dairy demand in basically all EU member states as Covid-19 restriction plans are ramped up.

The Government has introduced a number of measures to assist the self-employed and PAYE workers, which can help both full-time and part-time farmers if they fall ill or need to self-isolate during the coronavirus pandemic.

Find out here how you can apply for sick pay if you fall ill or need to self-isolate.

Minister Creed thanks farmers

Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed has thanked Irish farmers, fishers and food processing companies who put food on the country’s tables every day.

“At a time of significant challenge for our nation, I want to take a moment to pay tribute to the men and women who work so hard to put food on our tables every day,” he said, adding that we can take the food farmers produce for granted.

With schools closed, there are many more children at home on the farm than usual. Amii McKeever spoke to Alma Jordan about how to keep them safe and what jobs they can do without taking big safety risks.

Basic Payment Scheme: what will happen?

The Department of Agriculture has said that all farm inspections, farm payments and BPS deadlines will remain in place.

“Any delay in inspections or change to the application date may lead to delays in payments later in the year and we are anxious to avoid this at all costs,” the Department said.

It also assured farmers that export certification, TB testing, passport issuing and much more will continue. Read the full story here.

Teagasc is putting plans in place to facilitate advisers in assisting farmers to complete BPS applications in its offices over the coming month.